1 Timothy 5:1-2 -- R-E-S-P-E-C-T

To catch up on our adventure through 1 Timothy, click here and read from the bottom post up.

1 Timothy 5:1-2 (NIV):

"Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers, [2] older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity."

Paul gives Timothy some practical instructions on how to treat different types of people in the church in 1 Timothy 5.

He starts out advising him on how to treat older men, younger men, older women, and younger women. By treating people as family, Timothy can give them proper respect and stay pure as well.

Paul tells Timothy to:

1. treat older men as fathers
2. treat younger men as brothers
3. treat older women as mothers
4. treat younger women as sisters

Doing so gives two benefits:

1. It helps you treat people with respect (not "harshly").
2. It helps you treat people "with absolute purity."

We need to be absolutely pure in our dealings with people, and treating them like a parent or younger sibling is a good step towards that.

We also need to afford respect to those older than us even if we don't agree with them. It sounds simple, but offer the same respect for others that you would like to receive from them, whether or not your receive it from them.